Machine for winding thread on spools



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

. D. F. HUNT. MACHINE PoR WINDING THREAD 0N sPooLs.

No. 503.086. Patented Aug. 8.1893.

N fo (N10 Model.) A 2 sheets-'sheet La;

` D.VF. HUNT. MACHINE FOB. WINDING THREAD 0N sPooLs.

. Patented Aug. 8,1893.

menfam Unirse STATES PATENT Prion.

DAVID F. HUNT, OF ANTRIM, NEW HAMPSHIRE, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO HOWARD P. ELWELL, OF GLOUCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

MACHINE FOR WINDINGA THREAD ON SPOOLS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters PatentNo. 503,086, dated August 8, 1893.

Application filed September 3, 189.2.

T0 a/ZZ whom it may concern: l

Be it known that I, DAVID F. HUNT, of Antrim, county of Hillsborough, State of N ew Hampshire, have invented an Improvement in Machines for Winding Thread on Spools, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like letters and figures on the drawings representing like parts. Y

This invention has for its object to simplify and improve the construction of that class of machines adapted to Wind thread on spoolsy of commerce. In this class of machines it has been customary to provide devices for insuring a definite number of traverse strokes of the traverse mechanism for a spool of a given size and thread of a given number, and the number of strokes having taken place, the winding has been stopped automatically. In other machines the thread-laying finger of the traverse mechanism has had combined with it a device to contact with the beveled inner sides of the spool heads, and by devices intermediate it and the screw shafts change the half nuts automatically for each traverse, the traverse'being gradually longer and determined by the length of the space to be filled. My invention relates to this latter class of machines.

One part of my present invention consists in effecting the reversal of the thread traversing mechanism automatically by the direct contact of the thread guiding finger of the traverse mechanism onto the inclined inner ends of the spool heads, said finger being rigidly attached to one end of a rock shaft provided with suitable wings which as the said rock shaft is turned by the contact of said finger with the spool, effects the necessary movements of the half nut carrying f rame,and causes first one and then the other of said half nuts to engage the right and thelefthand threaded parts of the said shaft and effect the desired direction of movement of the traverse mechanism for the desired distance. This rock shaft in this present embodiment of my invention is also made vertically movable so as to enable the under side of the thread-laying finger to act directly on the surface of the thread being wound in layers on the spool, said rock shaft having at its Serial No. 444,947. (No model.)

lower end a piston filling a cylinder or chest containing preferably mercury, oil, or other suitable liquid not easilyevaporated, the piston being provided with a suitable valve-controlled passage or passages to enable the liquid to pass from the upper to the lower side of the piston with such slowness as to prevent any tendency of the thread-laying finger jumping or trembling under the action of the threadI leading it and being laid on the spool rotated at high speed. I have so proportioned the passages and valves referred to that the downward movement of the piston and rock shaft may be made more quickly, as when a spool is to be removed and another applied between the spool holdingapparatus. I have provided the rock shaft with an actuating device to contact with part of a stop motion and stop the rotation of the spool when filled,

said stop mechanism in thismy present invention cooperating-with a friction brake to be described.

Figure 1, in perspective shows a threadwinding machine having my improvements applied to it. Fig. la, shows the shipper lever detached; Fig. lb, part of the lever 5 and the link 6. Fig.2,is a detail showing the threadlaying finger, its rock shaft, cylinder, half nut carrying frame, and actuating device viewed from the side opposite that shown in Fig. l; Fig. 3, a detail in section of the cylinder and piston; Fig. 4, a detail of the end of the arm 5 and Fig. 5, a sectional detail of one of the two like chucks for holding the spool.

The frame-work of the machine consists essentially of end pieces A united by cross girths A', A2, the girth A2 having a stand A3 erected upon it, said stand containing suitable bearings for a shaft A4 which imparts motion to the spool a., to be wound with thread. The forward end of the shaft A4 has a suitable screw thread, see dotted lines, Fig. 5, upon which is secured a spool-holding clutch A5 made of a longitudinally uted block having a series of spurs 2, said blockentering a collar A5, the edges of the iiutes extending back to or beyond the face of the collar and getting a good hold upon the spool. Makingl the chuck of a fiuted piece and an independent collar enables the edges of the flutes to be extended back to or beyond the collar, which IOO could not be done economically if the collar and fluted piece were all in one.

The shaft A4, called the spindle shaft, has fast upon it a brake pulley b surrounded by a suitable band b', one end of which is fixed tothe stand A3, the other end being acted upon by a projection b3 of a belt shipper b4 pivoted at b2, said band when closed upon the brake pulley by the movement of the said belt shipper acted upon bya spring l)7 serves to instantly stop the rotation of the spindle, as will be described. But very slight strain on the band b is sufficient to enable it to act as a brake on the pulley b. The shipper b4 turns in the are of a circle about the center b2. The hub of' the brake pulley is shown as having a suitable belt pulley b5, to receive a suitable belt, not shown, driven from some suitable countershaft, not shown, and alongside of this pulley there is loose upon the shaft A4 a pulley h6 also suitably grooved to receive the said belt when the spindle is at rest. The belt shipper b4 has a suitable fork bx, see Fig. 1, to receive and guide the belt referred to from one to the other of the pulleys, a spring bl normally acting to move the shipper and put the belt upon the loose pulley. The shipper handle has extended upwardly from it a projection bs which is engaged by a latch b9 connected to a rock shaft blo mounted in suitable bearings on the stand A3 containing the spindle shaft, said latch being acted upon by a spring Z212 to keep it in engagement with the projection be of the shipper lever to hold in place with the driving belt on the fast pulley b5. The rock shaft bw has a depending leg bm, see Fig. l, provided at. its lower end with a regulating device b, shown as a lever pivoted at blsiand having one end normally weighted to contact with an adjusting device shown as a screw Z916, the adjustment of said screw putting the opposite end of the said regulating device in one or another position so as to be struck sooner or later by a lug as b on a feeler rod d, to be described, said regulating device when struck by said lug causing the shaft Z210 to be turned sufficiently to enable the latch bi to release the belt shipper and effect the stopping of the machine. The lower end of the rod (l is fixed to the actuating device c and to enablel it to follow the actuating device in its movements the lug d3 projecting from the carriage 20, see Fig. 1, is slotted to permit the said rod to move with the actuating device, the distance of the movement of the rod with the actuator being but slight owing to the slight movement necessary to enable the actuator to control the half-nuts.

In practice, the stand A3 will have pivoted upon it at one side of it near its upper end a drop wire as bs, so that when the thread going to the thread-laying finger c breaks, the short arm of the drop wire will act against the under side of the latch bf and lift it to disengage the projection b3, and stop the machine.

seance The spindle shaft has, as represented, at its outerend a cone pulley b1, which, by suitable straps b2" extended over a drum b21, rotates the screw shaft 1222, provided for about one half of its length with a right-hand screw, and for the other half of its length with a left-hand screw. Y

The stand A3 has a suitable ear 3 through which is extended a slide-rod 4C connected with a handle 5 pivoted upon a link 6 pivoted at 7 on a stand fixed to the frame-work, see Fig. 1l'. This slide-rod has connected to it the tail stock B of the machine, said tail stock having a suitable centering device as B, preferably of the same construction as that at the end of the spindle, to enter the spool. The tail stock may be moved back and forth by the handle referred to, to adapt it to the length of spool required.

The slide rod has fastupon it a cam bar B2 having cam surfaces 10,12, and a lug 13, said cam surfaces acting against adjustable fingers 14. l5, attached to the rocking frame B4 carrying the half nuts 16, 17, one or the other of which is to be kept in engagement with one of the threads of the screw shaft, except when the traverse mechanism is to be moved by hand, and when this is to be done, the cams 10, 12, by acting against the fingers push the lower end of the traverse frame away from the screw shaft sufficiently to remove both half nuts from the screw-threads.

1 will now describe the traverse mechanism. The stand A3 and the tail stock each have a suitable bearing as 18, 18x, which receive a slide rod 19 upon which is fastened by suitable set screws a carriage 2O having a tubular vertical bearing portion B? and a lug B5, the portion B3 receiving a rock shaft c having fixed to it near its upper end the thread-laying finger c, before described, over which is led in a suitable groove therein the thread to be wound upon the spool, the said thread coming from the thread guide 1918 referred to, through an eye c2 at the upper end of the rock-shaft. The slide rod 19, the carriage 2O attached thereto and having a vertical bearin g B3 and an ear B5, constitute what I denominate a slide or traverse frame, it being adapted to slide longitudinally first in one and then in the opposite direction and carrying with it the rock-shaft c to be described, the said rockshaft having attached to it the thread-laying finger c. The lug B5 of the carriage referred to receives a stud screw B, the lower end of which is screwed into a threaded ear Blof the cylinder or dash pot B8, the upper end of the stud screw being held in place by a nut BUV This stud screw supports and suspends below the carriage the cylinder referred to, which in practice, will be filled with mercury, oil, or other fluid F, see Fig. 3, not easily evaporated. The stud screw referred to forms the pivot for the frame B4 carrying the half nuts 1G, 17. The half nut frame B4 in this present embodiment of my invention, carries an arm B10 which engages one or another cam notch ICO IIO

IZO

200, see Fig. 4, in the end of a rigid arm B20 shown as connected to the cylinder BS, said' arm holding the half nut frame in one or the other of its extreme positions. The rockshaft c referred to, has fast upon 'it an actuating device c5 for the half nut carrying frame, said actuating device having, as shown, see Fig. 2, two depending fingers 201 adapted to act upon adjustable blocks 202 mounted upon the half nut carrying frame, said blocks being adjustable to thus compensate for wear and obviate any possible lost motion. The lower end of the rock shaft c has fast upon it a piston c6, see Fig. 3, provided, as represented in Fig. 3, with two passages c7, cs, one closed at its upper end with a valve c and the other at its lower end with a valve 01, the spring 020 controlling the valve c at the top of the piston being weaker than the spring 021 at the bottom of the piston in order that the oil or other liquid may have a more ready passage from the under side of the piston to its upper side than vice-versa. This piston by resting in the body of oil or mercury, or lequivalent acting-liquid, as described, Apositively obviates any jumping motions ofthe thread guiding nger c resting directly upon the strand of thread being laid in layers upon the spool, it being remembered that the spool is being rapidly rotated and that uneven or hard portions in the thread would have a tendency to make the threadlaying finger jump or tremble were it not for the piston referred to. The actuating device c5 referred to, carries a feeler rod CZ upon which is adj ustably secured the lug 517 before referred to, which lug, during reciprocation of the traverse mechanism to the left, view- .ing Fig. l, meets the controlling device b and stops the rotation of the spindle, as described, when the spool has been filled to exactly the proper point, this lug being certain in its action when the mass of thread has reached the desired diameter, the lug being adjustable for spools of different sizes and threads of different counts. I have also in this instance of my invention shown the said 'rod as provided with a stop device d2 which may be adj usted to the work to be done so that when the thread has been wound to make the spool of proper diameter, or so as to contain the desired number of yards, the said stop device will meet the project-ion d3 ofthe traverse mechanism, and prevent any further rise of the rock-shaft c and its threadlaying finger c, which would allow the said finger to pass beyond the head, thus destroying the value of that spool of thread. Referring to the spool a, it will be seen that the inner sides of its heads are inclined or beveled as at a', and I use these beveled surfaces to determine the length of each traverse. I am enabled to so use these beveled sides by-or through the employment of the rock-shaft c upon which.

I have fixed or secured the thread-laying tinger c, it being understood that, as soon as the thread-laying nger contacts with the beveled portion of the spooi,-the carriage being moved to the right or left bythe screwshaft,-the said finger will be momentarily arrested while the carriage 20 continues to travel sufficiently to rock the shaft c and cause it by its attached actuating device c5 to turn the half nut carrying frame B4 quickly in one or the other direct-ion so as to remove one half nut from one screw thread and put the other half nut in engagement with the other screw thread, which quickly reverses the movement of the traverse mechanism. This operation is continued each traverse being vlonger and longer until the maximum traverse is reached, i. c., until the thread-laying inger arrives at nearly the level of the periphery of the spool head, at which time the lug Z717 carried by the rod d which was lifted in unison with the rock shaft c', comes opposite thecontrolling device 514 formingpart of the stop motion before described, and actuates the stop motion to effectthe stoppin g of the rotation of the spindle. Now, if for any reason,

` as when the operator desires to put the threadlaying nger in any particular position with relation-to the spool, or to cause ahalf nut to engage any particular portion of the threads of the screw shaft, as may be the case sometimes after a thread has been broken and the operator desires to reset the machine to resume operations, theoperator may engage the cylinder by hand and pull it away from the screw shaft, a spring f connected with the cylinder and bearing on the rear part ofV the rod A at such times yielding sufliciently to let the half nuts. be disengaged from the screw shaft. When the tail stock is drawn fully to the right in Fig. l by or'through the hand lever 5, then both the half nuts are disengaged from the screw shaft by or through the cam bar B2 thus leaving the operator free to move the traverse more or less in any desired direction to properly place 'the' threadlaying finger in proper position for the work to be done.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure 'by Letters Patent, is

l. In a machine for winding thread, a rotatable spindle to rotate a spool having the inner sides of its head inclined; aV screw shaft; a pivoted frame having half-nuts at its opposite ends to co-operate with said screw shaft; a pivot for said frame, said pivot being located at right angles to the center of rotation of the screw shaft; a slide-frame having bearings for said pivot; combined with a sliding and rocking rod c arranged in bearings in said slide frame and occupying f a position substantially at right angles to the center of rotation of the screw shaft, and a thread-laying lnger, and an actuating device, both fixed to said sliding and rocking rod said actuating device being adapted to act upon and shift the half-nut carrying frame whenever, in the movements of the sliding frame, the thread- IOO rocking shaft contacts directly with the beveled inner face of one of the heads of the spool, to thus partially rotate said sliding and rocking shaft, substantially as described.

2. In a thread winding machine, the following instrumentalities, viz ;-a rotating spindle to rotate the spool to receive the thread, a rock shaft having a fixed thread-laying [in ger and providedat its lower end With a piston and also with an actuating device; a traverse frame in which said rod is mounted, a cylinder containing a uid through which the said piston is adapted to be moved, a rotating screw shaft and a frame carrying halt nuts, the said frame being turned in one or the other direction by the actuating device connected With the said rock shaft whenever the thread laying finger comes directly in contact with the head of the spool, substantially as described.

3. The combination with the rotating spindle and horizontal sliding traverse frame, ot' a vertically movable rod having fixed to it a thread laying finger and also a piston, combined with a cylinder containing a liquid in which said piston is immersed to thereby obviate jumping of the thread carrying linger on or with relation to the mass of thread being wound, substantially as described.

4. A rotating spindle adapted to carry a spool upon Which thread isto be Wound; a vertically movable rod having an attached thread laying finger; a rod as d moved in uni son therewith and provided with a lug; a belt shipper; a frame in which said rods reciprocate at right angles to the length of the spool; and means to reciprocate said frame; combined With stopping mechanism acted upon` by the said lug When the spool has been lled with thread, substantially as described.

5. A rotating spindle to carry a spool, a`

traverse frame, a vertically movable rod therein having a fixed thread laying finger, combined with a device movable in unison with the said rod and adapted to arrest its upward motion when a predetermined quantity of thread has been Wound upon the spool, substantially as described.

6. A rotating spool-carrying spindle, a fast and loose pulley thereon, a belt shipper, a stopping mechanism consisting of a latch and an arm provided with a controlling device, said controlling device being adjustable; combined with a vertically movable rod CZ having a lug which is gradually raised as the mass of thread increases in diameter upon the spool until the predetermined amount of thread having been Wound upon the spool, the said lug meets the said controlling device and effects the stopping of the machine, substantially as described.

7. In a spool-winding machine, the shipper; stop mechanism co-operating with said shipper and provided with an adjustable regulating device; combined with a traverse mechanism, a lug as b moved in unison with it, and devices to move the lu g toward the plane occupied by the end of the regulating device whereby when the desired length of thread has been wound, the saidlugstrikes the regulating device and eitects the release of the shipper so that it may move and cause the machine to be stopped, substantially as described.

8. In a machine for Winding thread on commercial spools, a spindle to rotate a spool; a screw shaft; a sliding or traverse frame having a pivot, a frame, as B, mounted on said pivot and provided with half nuts and with adjustable ears 202, combined with a rod c mounted in said frame and adapted `to both slide and rock therein, a thread-laying tinger attached to one end of said rod, and an actuating device attached to the other end ot' said rod, said actuating device being adapted to strike the said ears when the thread-laying finger contacts with the spool heads to operate the frame carrying the said half nuts, as and for the purpose set forth.

9. In a machine for winding thread on commercial spools, a spindle to rotate a spool; a screw shaft; a sliding or traverse framehaving a pivot; a frame, as B, mounted on said pivot and provided with half nuts and ears 202; a rod c mounted in said frame and adapted to both slide and rock therein; a thread-laying finger attached to one end of said rod, and an actuating device attached to the other end of said rod, said actuating device being adapted to strike said ears when the thread laying finger contacts with the `spool heads to operate the frame carrying the said halt nuts, combined with a locking device consisting of a spring and of a notched arm, substantially as described.

10. In a machine for winding thread on spools of commerce, a shaft having right and left hand screw threads, means to rotate said shaft, a slide or traverse frame, a stud BG mounted therein, the frame B4 adapted to turn about said stud and provided with halt nuts, and having adjustable fingers 14., 15, combined with a slide rod having an attached ,cam bar B2 provided with cam surfaces to cooperate With said pivoted frame, and a spring fto normally hold the said fingers pressed toward the said cam bar B2, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

DAVID F. I-IUN T.

Witnesses:

S. G. HAs'rINGs, F. W. ROBINSON.

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